The word ecommerce crops up more and more often in the retail world, but some are still unsure what it means. Essentially, ecommerce refers to any kind of commercial transaction that is carried out electronically.
With the internet becoming increasingly dominant in our everyday lives, it is vital for companies to have an ecommerce strategy now. Very few can survive purely on transactions in the physical world these days.
We are even seeing entire business sectors emerging that operate solely in the ecommerce space. A prime example of that would be the online casino industry.
That industry is proving to be tremendously successful within the ecommerce space too, posting big profits each year. This article is going to look at how casino sites accomplished that.
Inbuilt Advantages
Any examination of how online casinos came to dominate the ecommerce world must acknowledge that they had certain advantages to begin with. The sites initially gained a following because they enabled people to play casino games from home – which is a lot more convenient than travelling to a land-based casino.
In a world where people have limited free time and unlimited entertainment options, ease of access and convenience are very important. Online casinos are not restricted by standard opening hours either, so people can fit playing the games around their schedules.
The lower operating costs also allow them to offer bonuses that land-based casinos cannot match, as well as spending more on the most popular games. Thus, online casinos have hundreds of slot machines – and aggregator sites make it easy to find recommended UK slot sites.
Even accounting for all that though, casino sites have got a lot right.
- Adaptability to technology
One of the things that has helped online casinos to become so dominant is their adaptability to technological changes. This is an age of dizzying advances in technology, which create opportunities for sectors that can exploit them.
The digital casino industry offers a master-class in how to do that. It has harnessed advances in tech to streamline the layouts of the sites and the gaming graphics, as well as introduce innovations like mobile casinos and live casino.
Mobile casino apps started to emerge after the launch of the Smartphone and they feature games that are optimised to fit the smaller screens. They now make up a sizeable percentage of casino industry profits.
Live casino makes use of video streaming technology to connect players with studios designed to look like land-based casinos. These feature human dealers and have bridged the gap between the land-based and online experience.
- Cross-border approach
We are living in a globalised world where many of the barriers to connecting across nations have disappeared. Despite that though, some industries continue to concentrate their ecommerce resources on national markets.
That is not the case when it comes to the online casino one – this industry makes it easy for people to play casino games whatever their location. The sites are based in places where online gambling is legal and regulated – such as Malta – which allows people to use them without difficulty.
Focusing on a cross-border approach instead of a national one has enabled the online casino industry to maximise its potential customer base and its profits. The industry is reaping the benefits of an era of global liberalisation.
- Incentive-based marketing
The main marketing strategy that online casinos employ is one based around incentives. That means incentives for people to sign up to the sites in the first place and incentives to keep them there once they have.
Nothing about this is especially complex or innovative – it is a tried and tested approach to attracting and retaining customers. The online casino industry does show exactly what that strategy looks like when it is done well though.
The sites win over potential new customers through offers like free spins and matched deposit bonuses. Then they reward players who visit the sites regularly to play the games via loyalty programmes.
- Data security and safe payment options
Any activity that involves making financial transactions online can feel risky to the general public. But casino sites have gone out of their way to minimise those risks.
They have incorporated SSL encryption software to ensure the security of customer data. They have also added safe payment options like PayPal and other e-wallets.
As a result of taking the data security of their customers seriously, they have been able to convince millions of people to bet on their games. That is another reason for their ecommerce dominance and it is something for other industries to bear in mind.
Online casinos are continuing to explore options that can benefit customers, from cryptocurrency payments to virtual reality games. So their dominance of ecommerce will go on.
